in this strangest of years, i didn't do as much as i would have liked—who did?— but here's the big stuff that happened in brief. i: took a solo trip to LA, got laid off, co-wrote a book, made my own ice cream, baked a LOT, got another tattoo (see below), got another job, and adopted a cat.
since a tiny sliver of hope is on the horizon, i'm remaining optimistic and came up with 21 pretty realistic to-dos for '21. i'd love to hear your goals for what's hopefully a better year ahead.
1. successfully release my first book!
2. book an international trip
3. GO TO A CONCERT
4. host a celebratory dinner party
5. take a french class
6. place a piece somewhere i've never been published before
7. see a movie in a movie theater
8. read 20 9 books
9. have an indulgent, expensive, delicious meal *inside* of a restaurant
10. renew my passport
11. write a letter to myself to open in 10 years
12. make a new friend
13. find out my blood type
14. play the lottery
15. make a collage
16. learn a dance routine
17. chill in a hammock
18. stay in a beach house or cabin
19. compliment a stranger
20. visit the site of a scene from a movie or tv show
21. make pralines
and here are some best-of 2020 lists...
favorite books:
and now we have everything: on motherhood before i was ready by meaghan o'connell
oona out of order by margarita montimore
spinster by kate bolick
my misspent youth by meghan daum
acid for the children by flea
seinfeldia: how a show about nothing changed everything by jennifer keishin armstrong
we are never meeting in real life by samantha irby
alright alright alright: the oral history of richard linklater's dazed and confused by melissa maerz
favorite movies:
banana split
in a relationship
the king of staten island
straight up
favorite tv shows:
looking for alaska
shrill
the circle
high fidelity
little fires everywhere
being erica
emily in paris (it made me happy, sue me)
favorite albums:
(if you missed my favorite songs post, that's here.)
(also, harry styles would be included if his album wasn't technically released in 2019.)
the strokes - the new abnormal
momma - two of me
machine gun kelly - tickets to my downfall
hockey dad - brain candy
best coast - always tomorrow
gateway drugs - PSA
pope- the lunchbox EP
random miscellaneous things i loved:
discovering the best dancer i've ever seen in those choreography videos, a french timothée chalamet doppelgänger named andy daveiga
this documentary about '80s malls on youtube, mall city
dakota johnson's architectural digest house tour:
2020 goals in review:
1. get another tattoo: DONE
third tattoo's a charm? i took the plunge in july, after isolation made me nutty and i was struck with a major case of tattoo fever. i got the three of wands from the wild unknown tarot, which is all about adventure and exploration and life's magic, on my right inner bicep. i absolutely love this description of it:
Three wands are bound together, forming an inverted triangle. As you gaze into the center, you see a rainbow swirl. Is this a vortex? Another dimension? The future? Or something else entirely? That is for you to find out.
Branches jut out from the wands, they stand in contrast to the perfectly pruned wands we saw in the previous card. There is a juxtaposition in this card of structure and liberation: the wands come together to form a cohesive shape, yet the wands themselves are rugged, not perfectly manicured. These wands are free-spirited, yet also collected.
The background is filled with horizontal black lines, indicating a stable energy. This lack of flashiness draws your full attention to the wands, and above all else, to the colorful vision at the center. The swirling rainbow beckons you to leave behind the drab, colorless surroundings and explore all the magic life has to offer!
You are a visionary if you let yourself be one. You can look beyond obstacles. You can see beyond the mundane world. Endless terrain is out there for you to explore, if only you choose to say YES. The Three of Wands offers you a chance to survey the landscape around you. You need not rely on someone else’s map – you are exploring the wilderness for yourself, charting it according to your experience, your interpretation.
Your future is a blank canvas – and all the colors of the rainbow are available for you to create your experience going forward. There is no guarantee of exactly what you’ll find as you continue your explorations. Magic and wonder abound, yes – but illusions and setbacks are part of the journey, as well.
Some structure is useful, so give yourself a moment to survey your inner and outer landscape. The Three of Wands is about trusting your gut, but it’s also about surveying the energies around you. It is about action, yes – but it is about the kind of action that is born of intention, not impulse. The paradox here is you can only do so much planning and intention setting – eventually, you’ve just got to venture on and see where this portal takes you.
7. get a photo taken with a celebrity: DONE
and in the first three weeks of the year, to boot! i met hilary duff on the first friggin' night of my LA vacation in january, which was just about the only bright spot in this horrid year. lizzie mcguire forever.
11. meet an internet friend IRL: DONE
also in LA, i met my longtime twitter friend heather at the butcher, the baker, the cappucino maker, where we got colorful lattes and chatted for hours.
14. publish 10 humor pieces: PARTIALLY DONE
my brain was broken for most of the year, because...2020, but i managed to squeak out these three:
in a year when music was one of the only constants to cling to, there was actually an abundance of great releases, IMO. i guess angst and boredom breeds creativity, or whatever. let's get to it! full playlist for easier listening here.
short and sweet and sharp, "in repeat" is a three-minute double shot of espresso with whipped cream. wanderwild reminds me of bands like deeper or fellow georgians omni, except fronted by brandon flowers of the killers and i. fuckin'. love. it!
19. taylor swift - "the last great american dynasty"
to be honest, i vacillate wildly back and forth with miss swift; i adore 1989, i hate reputation, etc. etc. that being said, i absolutely love folklore because it focuses on her storytelling, where she always shines. "the last great american dynasty," written about heiress and socialite rebekah harkness, who previously owned taylor's mansion in rhode island, is a prime example. the imagery of lavish house parties, filling pools with champagne, and dying a dog key lime green perfectly encapsulates that feeling of over-the-top new england coastal wealth—if you've ever been to watch hill (where the mansion's located) or newport or block island, you get it. and when she switches the subject of the tale from rebekah to herself? chills.
18. the front bottoms - "montgomery forever"
"montgomery forever" is classic front bottoms: quirky, stream-of-consciousness lyrics ("i got into bed with my girlfriend/it was a stranger's bed/we fell asleep for four hours"), triumphant riff, and weird-ass spoken-word outro. it's definitely among my favorites on their latest album, in sickness & in flames, which i was actually pretty disappointed in overall. :(
17. taylor locke - "the bitter end"
when i love a band, i tend to be a long-hauler. as in, i'll devotedly follow the solo careers and side projects of every member. one case in point is rooney guitarist taylor locke, whose playing i've long admired. after rooney disbanded, he made a couple excellent power-pop records with his band, the roughs, whom i got to see at SXSW, as well as a solo effort in 2015 ("don't be a stranger" got a mention on my year-end list back then).
"the bitter end" has that breezy, summery '60s/'70s laurel canyon vibe, but there's also a, um, bittersweet, yearning quality to it that i really dig; especially with those background vocals toward the end. as louder sound put it, "it’s kinda like something tom petty might have written with jellyfish, if they’d taken a drive down the pacific coast highway together." exactly.
16. vundabar - "jester"
one of two massachusetts bands on the list this year, vundabar has been on my radar for a handful of years, i've seen them live once or twice, and i consider myself a casual fan. the duo's most recent release, either light, is my favorite thus far, with a handful of stellar tracks. this deep cut jumped out at me right away for some reason. i especially love the lazy, hazy, shuffling slacker melody, little vocal quirks, and noisy instrumental breakdown.
15. dababy f/ roddy ricch - "ROCKSTAR"
full disclosure that i first heard this in a tiktok dance challenge, but boy howdy, is it catchy! also, can we talk about how emo the lyric "full of pain, dropped enough tears to fill up a fuckin' bucket" is?! lol.
this. chorus. though. so simply, so catchy, so gooooood. 'nuff said.
13. partner - "good place to hide (at the time)"
pre-covid, i talked a fair amount of shit about opening acts, but when you discover a good one, it's SO REWARDING. such was the case with partner, a duo of canadian ladies whom i saw warm up for shamir a couple years ago at great scott. they lit up the room with their stoner stage banter, cheeky songs about being high at the grocery store, and unapologetic shredding, reminding me of a female version of natural child in their heyday. this track has major '80s rush vibes and is just a damn good time. i don't know exactly why, but 2:16-3:00 is one of the most satisfying things i've heard all year.
12. the novacs - "on top"
the novacs are basically catfish and the bottlemen 2.0 and i am extremely here for it. they're scottish, not welsh, but otherwise...almost identical. even the thematic elements are the same: a girl, getting drunk, yada yada yada. since catfish didn't release any new music this year, this is the next best thing. as they say across the pond, it's an absolute tune.
11. dan croll - "yesterday"
first of all, i lovelovelove that this song is about mr. croll meeting sir paul mccartney and being upset because he was stressed and tired and didn't say everything he wanted to or something like that. but beyond that, it's so soothing and pretty and sounds like nothing else i've heard this year.
10. eliza & the delusionals - "pull apart heart"
there's always at least one song on the list that you'd probably find on the reality bites soundtrack, and i reckon this is the one. big, crunchy guitars and a simple-yet-huge earworm of a chorus harken back to the days of juliana hatfield, letters to cleo, and liz phair with a bit of an aussie twist.
9. phantom planet - "time moves on"
will i ever get through this song without tearing up? the jury's still out. PP dropped this single right at the start of lockdown, and even though it's supposedly about lead singer alex greenwald's breakup with brie larson, the lyrics are eerily apropos for this year: "it's just the same day over and over/i mean, seasons will change/and we will get older/maybe it rains/or it's sunny weather/but when it gets bad/maybe it'll get better." it's also a perfect reminder of why i've loved phantom planet since i was in seventh grade: alex has such a knack for writing a beautiful, timeless, melodic pop song—even 18 years later, this would fit right in on the guest.
8. hannah georgas - "just a phase"
if you need a soundtrack for taking a long drive at night and/or lying down in a field and stargazing, here you go. you're welcome!
7. gateway drugs - "backroom lover"
i feel like nobody really knows about this band still, and that's a damn shame. i've been a fan since 2015's magick spells, but was so happy they finally came out with a new album because i mostly associate that first one with hooking up with a supreme asshole. speaking of which, their songs are so sexy for some reason i can't quite put my finger on. the singer's voice? the kinda-sultry, shoegazey instrumentals? whatever it is, this one in particular just makes me want to bite my lip. oh, and the record was produced by sune rose wagner of the raveonettes, so if you're a fan of them—or the jesus and mary chain, or ride for that matter—you'll love gateway drugs.
i don't know what the lyrics are actually about, but the story i've made up in my head is that it's an affair between coworkers at like, a convenience store or video rental store if those still existed, because it totally sounds like making out in a supply closet. and the line at the end, "i don't wanna see you in your sundress" is the dude being all like, "i can't stand seeing you all dressed up at the farmer's market on sunday with your boyfriend when you know we're banging in the break room." or, uh, back room. maybe? maybe.
6. machine gun kelly - "bloody valentine"
things that got me through 2020: my family and friends, music, netflix, herbal refreshments, and...machine...gun...kelly? my oh my, how things can change in only a couple of years. back in 2018, i was kind of ribbing him for his decent-but-mostly-underwhelming eminem diss track, and something about his vibe just rubbed me the wrong way. i know it sounds backwards because he's known as a rapper, but it felt disingenuous. once he switched to pop-punk, though? it feels like this is his true self. it's authentic and bright and relatable. i first starting coming around during quarantine, when his lockdown session videos piqued my interest ("in these walls," "misery business," and "smoke and drive" were favorites) and by june, i was in full-blown fangirl mode.
the entire tickets to my downfall album—especially "kiss kiss," "concert for aliens," "forget me too," and "jawbreaker"—brings me *right* back to the days of warped tour and TRL and jackass and sum 41 in such a wonderfully visceral way, it's almost mind-blowing. though, considering that MGK is only a bit younger than me, he grew up with that sound too, so it shouldn't be a huge surprise that he completely nails it. travis barker probably has something to do with that, too. honest to god, one of my happiest memories in this awful, shitty year is cruising along the lynnway, looking at the ocean on a 75-degree october day, and blasting this record.
"bloody valentine" is the best tune never released in 2005, with a soaring chorus, crisp drums, and stadium-ready "na-naaa-na"s. others ("drunk face," "my ex's best friend," "all i know") cleverly incorporate the modern pop/trap sound in a way that even this old fart loves. how do you do, fellow kids?
of all of the artists i'm dying to see live when shows return, he has inexplicably skyrocketed to the top of my list. there's really no scenario i can imagine at the moment that will feel more life-affirming and joyful and cathartic than being drunk and screaming every single lyric to every single one of these songs along with thousands of other former emo kids.
5. boyfriend machine - "one more week"
MA's own! the quarantine project of eliza young and joey distasio in amherst, this psych-rock duo immediately made a fan out of me upon my first listen to this song. the guitar tone, the melody, the deadpan verse delivery...it all just works so well. ones to watch!
4. hockey dad - "i missed out"
garage rock? yes. australians? yes. australian garage rock? sign me up, baby. hockey dad's brain candy was one of my favorite albums of the year. this is a song designed for drumming on your steering wheel, bopping your head, and screaming "TIIIIMES AWAYYY!" also, not the faintest idea what it means, but "i just got back from having my eyes peeled" has to be one of the dopest opening lyrics ever.
3. momma - "biohazard"
...and the award for the most slept-on album this year goes to two of me by momma. it's so solid from beginning to end and completely captures all of those cool, dark early-'90s grunge vibes while still remaining totally authentic; kind of crazy, considering that etta friedman and allegra weingarten are all of 21 and 22 years old. "biohazard" immediately transports me to a smoky seattle coffeehouse in 1992, which is obviously in my top 10 list of places i'd want to time travel to. and that scream! p.s. i swear the hockey dad/momma placement was completely unintentional.
2. loose buttons - "fell into a hole"
do you ever listen to a song that you know you've never heard before, but it sounds so familiar because it's just so YOU? like, sonically and mood-wise, it speaks to you on every level and makes you feel how you feel when you're at your best and your happiest and the most YOURSELF. it's like a song soulmate or something. just me?
well, "fell into a hole" is one of the most "me" songs i've ever heard in my life. it's got that early/mid-2000s indie feel along with a sunny pop sensibility that you'd find during a lighthearted teen movie montage (aka two of my favorite musical vibes). i actually LOLed when i read a stereogum review of the track that said "i promise this isn't supposed to be an insult: they remind me of one of those post-strokes bubblegum rock bands that would jockey for placement in O.C. episodes and ipod commercials. they are kids playing a cleaned-up and ultra-catchy version of hip downtown rock ‘n’ roll, like phantom planet fronted by a young, winsomely sneering alex turner. i like it!"
like i said: me as fuuuck! it doesn't hurt that it brings me back to feeling totally carefree and blissful as i traipsed through the hills of silver lake in LA shortly before everything went to shit this year, so there's that, too.
1. the strokes - "eternal summer"
the recipe for this song: combine one part psychedelic furs, one part pink floyd, one part the strokes, and one part the voidz, add a dash of daft punk, shake, and serve over ice. of all the things that got me through those daaaark fucking days of quarantine, this topped the list. and also thanks to the dark fucking days of quarantine, i'll never forget the first time i heard it: on the strokes' zoom talk show, as they went song by song on the new abnormal the night before its release. it's dorky, but it felt extremely cozy to be listening to it "with" them and hear the stories behind the tracks; a major comfort when it was so necessary. below is the "eternal summer" chat, if you care.
it grabbed me right away and i wanted to listen to it on a loop forever and ever...and pretty much did. it has all the casual cool of a '70s r&b song with the atmospheric elements of a psych-rock song, the garage-rock charm of an old-school strokes song, and the pop sheen of a top 40 song. the topic—global warming—is timely. plus, the way julian sings "this iiiis a faaaahhhntasyyyy" just really gets me going.
sidenote: i knew my immediate predilection was on point when i watched "the internet's busiest music nerd" anthony fantano's review of the album and he singled this out as his LEAST favorite(!!!). our taste is always compleeeetely opposite and his taste is always compleeeetely wack. meanwhile, fab, the band's drummer, says this is his favorite. so who are we to trust, hmm?
to that point, though, i feel like "eternal summer" is the type of song you either get or you don't. to my ears, it's weird and daring and brilliant in all the best ways, completely encapsulating what this year should have been and what this year actually was. carefree, windows-down verses, then ominous spirals into doom, then catchy "hey! yeah! oh!" percussive hooks and that euphorically groovy, filtered ending. I can't wait to hopefully drive around next summer in a state of beautiful, vaccinated normalcy with this one cranked to 11. life is such a funny journey.
PLEASE, DUNKIN', NEVER TAKE AWAY THE OAT MILK, I BEG OF YOU. i've been using oat milk lately to make chia pudding so i'm on a bit of a kick, and when i saw that i had a dunkin' perks free beverage reward to redeem, i spared no expense and went balls to the wall with their latest offering. i swear to god it was the best coffee beverage i've ever had?
...to make sure it wasn't a fluke and because i couldn't stop thinking about it, i obviously had to get it the next morning and my opinion remains unchanged. the creaminess of the oat milk and the bite of the espresso are just unreal. and i got it with one sugar, so maybe that takes it over the top. try it and let me know what y'all think.
2. this song by mad wave, "caroline"
i don't know what it is about september, but i feel like historically, my spotify september playlists are my favorites. the songs on them are just, like, much better than those from other months for whatever reason. and every year, there are one or two tunes that really stand out to me and capture the feel of the month. "caroline" is that song for september 2020. it's got a great, chill groove and earworm chorus and the harmonica is an unexpected and cool touch. it sounds like apple picking, the first day you put on a scarf, and pulling down your mask on a coffee shop patio to take a sip of your cider. :(
3. this extremely accurate gemini meme
personally. attacked.
4. this new hgtv show, selling the big easy
when i visited new orleans with gleni nearly 7 years ago on one of the best vacations ever, i was immediately obsessed and have been thinking about going back ever since. it's historic, charming, colorful, mystical and magical and slightly spooky, and full of amazing food and drink. so basically, it's me in city form...heyyyo (along with st. augustine, florida and savannah, georgia).
while that return trip obviously won't be happening any time extremely soon, i can now live vicariously through folks who are shopping for amazing shotgun-style houses in the french quarter thanks to this show. it's essentially just house hunters: new orleans, but so what, who cares?
i must say, though, that HGTV really dropped the ball on the show's name; so many catchier options! ownin' NOLA, french quarters, big easy digs, etc.
5. rediscovering this performance of kurt vile's "bassackwards"
to me, no musician quite captures the spirit of autumn quite like KV. i mean, yeah, i listen to him excessively all year anyway, but i go nuts when that first cool breeze hits—i've probably played "jesus fever" 20+ times in the past week alone. this mini-documentary on youtube that came out last fall is beautiful and autumnal and worth a full watch if you have 20 minutes to spare, but i always come back to this porch performance of "bassackwards." the rain is pouring and it's so earnest and cozy and brings a tear to my eye every time. can i just go hang in a huge catskills house with kurt vile and bake pies? i feel like it would be a great time.
Two girls in overalls, hair tied back, throwing cream-colored pottery on the wheel in their garage. A construction worker asleep on the job (or just on someone's porch). A woman working diligently on her laptop in a gingham sundress. A young couple enjoying cocktails in the shade of their deck, sharing a private moment in plain view.
A cookbook, The Food of Portugal, sitting unattended on a sidewalk table, pages browning. A collection of seashells artfully arranged—without context—on a front stoop. Distressed and tattered mauve loveseats on the curb, looking mostly in vain for a new home. Abandoned bikes in the front yard, worn out from a long day of visits to ice cream stands and friends' houses.
Some days, when there's a bit of a breeze and it's slightly overcast and the soundtrack in my headphones is just right, it feels like strolling through a storybook. Ivy climbing up stone facades, technicolor flowers blooming cheerfully, wild rabbits hopping through secret backyard gardens, vibrantly painted doors, tabby cats lounging in dappled sunlight, Little Free Libraries filled with treasures, regal Victorian turrets, the scent of fragrant garlic or freshly laundered sheets wafting out from window screens and hinting at the stories unfolding behind them. Each home its own novel, me making notes in the margins. Even the unpleasant blare of a clarinet or sour note on a piano is rendered oh-so-charming because it means that there's a very determined young person trying in earnest to learn a musical instrument, and you can't not love that. Plus, it's only in passing. If I lived downstairs, I'm sure it would be far less endearing.
My imagination goes wild; the sight of a lush, leafy overhead trellis on someone's deck has me planning dinner parties with red wine and twinkly lights and charcuterie. A stranger's hammock invites me to curl up with a book until I'm lulled to sleep by that gentle rocking motion. A bright purple or pink triple-decker simply has to house an eccentric creative that wears long paisley skirts and has at least 30 houseplants and an art studio in the attic. You see, I'm the type of person that goes to open houses for fun, even when I'm blissfully happy in my current digs. The variety of decor, energies, and room layouts do wonders to inspire me to incorporate new ideas into my own home—or just nail down the specific vibe I'm going for next. So when I can't actually go inside, my brain is more than happy to fill in the specifics based on a few exterior cues.
And in this strange, surreal chapter when my world has become extremely small and travel is largely limited to the places I can walk and drive, there's something to be said for the understated, comforting magic of the world right outside of my door.
1. this song by before the king, "low expectations" (and the music video)
this tune is a total summer bop, no question about it. but what's even more fun is this video. i'm going to put this man on my vision board because he embodies my exact favorite type of energy in a person. i guarantee you that this guy dances like a goofball at weddings. he's the fun stranger you meet at a music festival or on vacation or at the bar that you end up hanging out all night with and that makes the whole experience better. he's the absolute opposite of a "bump on a log" aka my LEAST favorite type of person. okay, i'm obviously projecting here, but you get what i'm saying. crank it up!
2. the baby-sitter's club on netflix
like many of my fellow '90s children, i grew up devouring the entire baby-sitters club series by ann m. martin (and even the spinoff, the california diaries—anyone remember that? bueller?), but i was still a little wary when i heard about the tv series and was thinking it would be a girl meets world situation where it's, uh, geared toward young'ns rather than the folks like me who remember the original. i was pleasantly surprised to find that it bridges the gap; i thought it was accessible for all ages, but i didn't feel elderly watching it—except when i realized alicia silverstone was playing kristy's mom. yes, we're that old, guys! they kept the storylines pretty faithful to the books while adding a modern twist, which was nice, too. also, claudia's style is still so fiiiiire. 3. random people's retro home videos
one of my favorite quarantine discoveries has been old footage from the '60s, '70s, and '80s on youtube. it's a beautiful, hilarious treasure trove of human experience! in particular, this day in the life of two bill-and-ted-esque hooligans is just delightful:
there's also this slice of life from a 7-11 in 1987:
great stuff.
4. anthony kiedis' autobiography, scar tissue
i've never been particularly attached to the red hot chili peppers—though, as you may have seen recently on twitter, anthony kiedis in the "under the bridge" video was my first celebrity crush when i was around five. the long hair, the tattoos, the lack of shirt, and the running all burned themselves into my brain in a most favorable manner back then. and i'm also low-key fascinated and obsessed with john frusciante because he's a fucking insane player. i'm aware that RHCP are one of those bands that get a lot of hate and shit by music critics and snobby fans; some justifiably so, some not IMO. i personally enjoy quite a bit of their stuff, though there's certainly a major nostalgia factor there. i can still close my eyes and see myself in my friend's den in 1999, watching the "around the world" video because MTV played it a bazillion times a day.
anyway, this book came out in 2004 but i'm on the waitlist for flea's autobiography, so i figured i'd just go on a chili peppers binge and bang this one out too. despite not being super into the band, on a personal level, it's actually a pretty fascinating peek behind the curtain of this musician who's been in the periphery of my life for so long. plus, beyond the standard sex, drugs (and drugs, and drugs) and rock 'n roll, there's a lot of great gossip and dirt, which is always fun with a book of this kind. really engaging so far.
oh! one weird thing i do is try and determine my top five songs for any "legendary" rock band, and i realized i hadn't for the chilis, so here goes. it's quite random. 1. knock me down 2. can't stop 3. soul to squeeze 4. scar tissue 5. fortune faded. i'd love to debate if anyone has the urge. and despite being the best song, "knock me down" has the dumbest, worst, most tacky 1989 video everrrrr.
remember when we all thought that things would be "back to normal" by now? LOL. granted, i'm currently writing to you from the parking lot patio of my favorite coffee shop because i had to get out of my damn house, so that's progress i suppose. but with no concerts, festivals, movie theater visits, or big trips on the horizon, it's going to be a loooong, pretty lame summer. but! all is not lost. i'm tapping into my unsinkable optimism and determined to make the best of it. here are some of my plans. i'd love to hear yours! especially if it involves inviting me to a pool party and/or one of the martha's vineyard gingerbread cottages. 1. take a day trip
yeah, the bathroom sitch is a little precarious, but i feel like this is still a possibility. if you're near a cute little town or seaside village of some sort, make a day of it and explore a new place near you.
2. try your hand at gardening
i meeeean, if i can do it, anyone can! so far, i'm growing tomatoes, chives, thyme, basil (purple and green), banana peppers, and climbing beans on my deck. we'll see if they all make it through the summer, but i'm feeling good so far. here's my setup:
3. have a patio dinner/drink (at a safe distance)
your mileage may vary, and i haven't ventured out to a restaurant patio quite yet, but i'm personally looking forward to enjoying dinner with a friend al fresco soon and feel fairly comfortable about it depending on the place's seating set-up. another option that i have tried: grabbing takeout and having a pal over to enjoy it on your own deck! almost as good.
4. make your house look really cute
i already wanted to marry my apartment and have like, 10,000 of its babies, but i've really kicked my love affair into high gear now that i'm spending so much time at home. my main project is a gallery wall, which i'm almost done with (an example of one is above if you're unfamiliar) and i'm so excited about it. also, one of the few good things about facebook is that it probably has a "free stuff" group for your town/city. i've gotten a bunch of great new items fo' free from mine, including an adorable yellow table, an aloe plant, and turkish coffee set. and as i was writing this, i saw that my upstairs neighbor, who's moving, put some stuff out front and i just snagged these great little tchotchkes. yessss!
5. go fruit-picking
it's pretty easy to keep your distance from other people, and if like me, you forgot what REAL/non-grocery store fruit tastes like, it's a nice reminder. 6. rewatch your favorite shows/movies
...and maybe find some new ones! when i'm in a less-than-great mood, the comfort of watching shows i love and have seen a billion times—lately, broad city, younger, workaholics, no reservations, and seinfeld—never fails to cheer me up. last week, i discovered being erica on hulu, thanks to the recommendation of a writer i follow, and i'm obsessed! it's one of those time-travel drama series i'm a sucker for, a la hindsight (which met its demise way too soon). this scratches that itch and i'm so happy i found it. 7. go wandering
walking has NOT been cancelled, thank god! i've been very much enjoying my daily neighborhood walks. and last weekend, i actually drove into kendall square on sunday so i could park for free/without dealing with meters and touching things, walked into the city, and spent the afternoon strolling around. aside from wearing a mask, it felt almost like the good ol' days! 8. have a picnic
who doesn't love a good old-fashioned picnic? a handful of years ago, my friend and i bought a pre-packed basket from this hotel restaurant that came with wine, cheese, charcuterie, crostini, and boston cream pies in little jars and we ate it in boston common and sipped our wine covertly out of plastic cups and it was adorable. i really wish they were still doing that this year (i just checked and they are not), but i'm hoping to recreate this experience at some point because it was just lovely.
9. make a summer playlist
thank god for music, man. as is tradition, i whipped up a playlist of new and old tunes to get me through the dog days. 10. go to a drive-in movie
can you believe i've never been to one, even pre-pandemic? i'm bound and determined to make it happen now that it's en vogue. 11. read!
on the plus side, i've read more books this year than i have in so very long; i think i'm on #10 now! 12. stock up your bar cart (and perfect a cocktail or two)
sort of related to making your home look cute...get that home bar cart ready to rock. i was inspired to get mine in shape after watching like 1,000 of the apartment therapy tour videos and noting that the bar cart just seemed to make everyone who possessed one seem like a real, live adult.
13. take a hike
you'll feel in touch with nature AND accomplished.
14. whip up a summer dessert or three
not only is it a great distraction and quite therapeutic, but you get to enjoy the fruits of your labor when you're done! i made this cinnamon ice cream a couple weeks ago and have a whole bunch of other light and easy desserts on the docket.
RELATED: hit up an ice cream stand for a sundae or root beer float.
15. take an aimless drive at night
queue up that playlist and just cruise around. it's the little things right now. it really is.
i guess i've been on a hulu tear because not a single one of these is on netflix!
stella's last weekend 6.5/10
an entertaining little indie drama. sure, there are some real heavy-handed scenes (the arcade, oof) and alex wolff's character can be way too much at times (nat is great, though!), but stella's last weekend is a lovely update to the "two brothers in love with the same girl" plot—starring actual brothers and their mom!—with some funny dialogue and poignant moments.
high fidelity 8/10
loved it! zoe kravitz was the perfect casting choice to turn the '90s classic on its head and give it a fresh spin in TV form—plus a dose of much-needed girl power. the supporting characters were all fabulous, the music references were solid, and most importantly, the writers did a fantastic job of really nailing the deeply flawed, unlikeable nature of rob's character in the book and movie. in a relationship 7/10
i tend to gravitate toward these kind of dramatic, romantic indie movies a la peter and vandy, a case of you, in your eyes, and hello i must be going, and in a relationship continued in that tradition. emma roberts and michael angarano, whom i love, star as that couple who has been dating forever but also hate each other and fight all the time and you don't understand while they're still together. meanwhile, matt and willa are just starting to date. a highly relatable, realistic, and modern look at relationships. little fires everywhere 8/10
full disclosure that i never read the book, but man, the series was insanely captivating and i couldn't wait for the new episode each week. the plot centers on the intersecting lives of two women's families in a small ohio town, both of whom are shady in their own ways, making it hard to know who to trust. and also, it's set in the late-90s so the music is on point.
big time adolescence 7.5/10
it has taken me a while to admit that i have enormous dirtbag crushes on both pete davidson and machine gun kelly; more MGK than pete, but they're both hilarious and attractive in that questionable "late-20s/early 30s stoner you meet at a skatepark" kind of way aka MY KRYPTONITE. but i digress. big time adolescence is a coming-of-age comedy/drama with a pretty unique plot: a teenager bonds with his older sister's boyfriend (played by pete), and their friendship continues even after the two break up. machine gun kelly is pete's best friend, and sex, drugs, and hijinks ensue.
isn't it romantic 7/10
honestly, i enjoyed this way more than i expected to. sometimes, you just need a dumb, silly, feel-good rom-com and this one totally delivers. rebel wilson stars as a down-on-her-luck NYC woman who's always been overlooked by guys she's into...until she gets knocked unconscious in the subway and her life turns into an over-the-top, fantastical romantic comedy—complete with cliches like her stoner neighbor becoming her gay BFF and her apartment being magically updated to a luxurious penthouse (you just have to go with it). it kept me engaged the whole time and the cinematography was so aesthetically pleasing in that dreamy, disney way. cute!
1. this video about explaining the pandemic to your past self
imagine trying to prepare your january 2020 self for the absolute shitshow this year would become in just a matter of weeks. such a clever concept and i absolutely lost it at the walk part!
...slash basically everything happening with the strokes right now, because we need them more than ever. their new and extremely perfectly-titled album the new abnormal, is their first in seven years. y'all, i love it so much i could cry. behind is this it and room on fire, it's probably tied with first impressions of earth and i might like it even more than that one, but i haven't decided yet. in particular, i've listened to "eternal summer" 2000 times since friday. each time, i close my eyes and start dancing like lena dunham in that GIRLS scene set to robyn. then, i imagine listening to it when this living nightmare is at least somewhat over (please, god, sometime this summer) with a cocktail in hand and surrounded by friends and weeping tears of gratitude for the simple pleasures in life and julian's impeccable falsetto.
there's also their hilarious zoom chat series, in which nick can't remember their songs, jules looks like he's in a teenage boy's room, fab is killing it with one liners while trapped in a painting, albert is albert, and nikolai doesn't speak. so good.
but oh yes, this piece! i love this piece. it explains all of the reasons i've loved the strokes since i was 16 and will continue to love them forever. an excerpt:
The Strokes’ music makes everything feel less high-stakes. This might be
why it sounds so good in an emergency. Nothing is ever so unbearable
that it can’t be shrugged off. People arrive and depart, relationships
begin and fracture, things are lost, parties get boring—whatever.
3. this cute dress i might buy to celebrate when we can leave our houses again
4. this spice girls cover by the struts
along
with friday night livestream living room concerts from my man kevin
griffin (better than ezra), the struts' "sunday service" youtube
episodes are getting me throooough the quarantine. and this unexpected
(but delightful) cover of "stop" was something i didn't know i needed
until it happened. those dance moves! can someone please tell me how the
hell i remembered ALL of the words instantly when i probably haven't
heard this song in over 20 years? brains are weird, bro. 5. this incredibly accurate tweet
how's everyone holding up? i'm an eternally optimistic person, but i'll be honest: i'm not great! it's nothing short of surreal that just a few weeks ago, i was concerned with the upcoming shows and social engagements on my calendar and deciding what new restaurants i wanted to check out. and i shudder to think about how on january 22, as i was in a lyft on the way to LAX to fly home from los angeles, i completely shrugged off my driver's comment about how they were starting to test travelers coming in from china that day for coronavirus. now, just a little more than two months later, down is up and up is down. i just got laid off with 74 other people from my company. i've cried at least once every day for the past couple weeks. and while i know things will eventually go back to normal, it's so, so hard to believe in the middle of it all.
i know i'm not alone, but i VERY quickly realized that my life revolves around being out and about with lots of people: concerts, dining out, traveling, shopping, cafes! i even miss the silly little things like the guy at dunkin' donuts who knows my order and the people i see on the bus every day. i do feel very fortunate that i've gotten to travel pretty extensively in the past decade, so i've been leaning on those memories hard and trying to think ahead to when i can make more in the future.
what are you going to do when this is over and we're let back into the wild again? i'll start!!
sit in a bustling coffee shop on a sunday morning with a croissant and cold brew
hug all my friends and family forever
dance my ass off to live music at all of the local venues (and honestly at this point, i'd even go to a stupid nightclub again!)
go thrifting and antiquing and record shopping
wander target and marshalls and tj maxx aimlessly
GO TO THE MALL
attend a music festival and be endlessly grateful for once to be surrounded by annoying, sweaty people
get dressed up and have all of the cocktails and a super fancy dinner at every single one of my favorite restaurants (my optimistic goal is to be able to celebrate my birthday this way on may 28)
window shop on newbury street
get a mani-pedi
sit in a dark movie theater eating popcorn
stroll through the west village in new york
see a broadway musical
get lost in a bookstore for hours
lay on hampton beach in new hampshire and stroll the stupid boardwalk and eat fried dough
travel to greece, portugal, australia, all of those charming villages in france, everywhere (a ways down the road, i know)
we'll get there. we will. i know it. and in the meantime, thank god for netflix.
i listened to an episode of the cut's podcast a couple months ago that was all about the ghosts of inboxes past: ancient emails, both received and sent. this is extremely my shit, obviously, so i went hunting for some gems. feel free to share your own in the comments!
WE HAVE:
a ridiculously tacky rejection email...
Tue, Jan 5, 2016, 1:06 PM
Hi Kim Windyka,
Thank you for taking
the time to talk with me about our Copywriter position. You probably
won’t like this news but we’ve got a few candidates who are a better
match for the role and we’re confident one of
them will find a new home here.
Please keep an eye out for other opportunities as you seem like someone we’d like onboard eventually.
Stay optimistic!
--------------
a delightfully random exchange with a total stranger...
Sat, Aug 13, 2011, 10:09 AM
Hi,
I visited my sister in Portsmouth last week. One day Amity and her Odd Showroom were featured in the daily newspaper in an article about how she designed a dress for a movie premiere, for the wife of the Cowboys and Aliens director. Anyway, I went to the Odd Showroom and bought a shirt that day. Then, this morning I did a quick Amity related Google and came across a blog of yours about how much you like Portsmouth and that you had stopped by her store. You seem interesting so I thought I'd say hello. I live in Calabasas, California. Seems like you live in Florida. I'm not sure. I've really only spent about 3 minutes reading your various posts, but you caught my eye.
Aug 13, 2011, 11:21 AM
Hey, Ben!
Indeed, I actually moved to Orlando for
grad school just about two weeks ago from Boston (though I'm originally
from NH, hence my love for Portsmouth!). If I recall, I think that blog
was from a few years back so that's funny that it still showed up!
That's awesome news about Amity, I haven't been to the store in a couple years now but I always really liked it. What do you do out there in Calabasas?
Sat, Aug 13, 2011, 11:55 AM
Kim,
Amity's store was a bit of a scene that day since a lot of people were there fresh from reading the paper.
I'm
an elementary school teacher. I don't have a position for the fall.
This morning I'm studying for a test that will hopefully get me placed
in a special ed classroom with the district here.
From where I
am in Calabasas it is a short drive through the canyon to Malibu and
Surfrider beach. I always see this guy there with Florida plates and
occasionally a Florida sweatshirt. He runs a surfing camp. He's great
with the kids. So, all summer that is what I think about when I think
of Florida.
What are you up to in grad school? Do you like Florida so far?
Sat, Aug 13, 2011, 9:45 PM
Very cool, a few of my friends up in Boston are teachers - I could never have the patience!
Classes
actually don't start for me until the 22nd so I'm in a bit of a weird
limbo since I don't know anyone here yet, so I've just been exploring
and trying to enjoy my time off before the work starts! I'll be studying
mass communications, though.
Florida is a total culture shock for sure, but
that's mainly why I decided to give it a whirl...I figure now's the time
to do something like this and it'll be an adventure if nothing else.
I'm a bit homesick for New England but I guess that comes with the
territory!
Wed, Aug 17, 2011, 12:24 AM
I think mass communications is an exciting thing to be doing in grad school... I bet you could end up with some great jobs down the road.
I discovered lots of cool things the last couple hours after first finding out about the comedian Jordan Rubin, and then his podcast, and then an episode with Rob Delaney. That led to exploring the Tweets they were reading. I'm suddenly closer to signing up for Twitter. Listening to the podcast was this interesting flurry of connections in discovering new funny people and funny comments and then hearing that this guy's wife is a teacher, and then all the sudden Twitter was suddenly seeming so funny and viable for me to follow on... So far the only Tweets on my radar over the last several years pretty much have been athlete related.
Anyway, I remembered that you're on Twitter and I thought of that for a second. Believe it or not I really didn't look at your Tweets or webpage for more than a few seconds the other day, but seeing stuff you "said" like the Kelly Rowland song Motivation, mentioning mmmbopping the Hanson brother and how he has fiddy kids, and you and your glass of wine jumped right out at me as you being someone with a good attitude!
Good luck working through new Floridaness and New England homesickness... and Have fun!
--------------
the sweetest thanks-but-no-thanks from a literary agency (and the very FIRST i ever queried with my work!)
Mon, Aug 11, 2014, 12:53 PM
Dear Kim,
Thank you for giving us the opportunity to consider your work. We've had a chance to read and discuss [Potential Book Title], and while your stories are funny, clever, and smart, we’re sorry to say that we don't think it is right for us at this time.
Publishing
is a tough business, and the response of any individual agent—or indeed
dozens of agents—is not necessarily a comment on the inherent value of
the project. Every agent has individual tastes and individual business
requirements. We wish you the best of luck in finding the right path to
publication.
---------------
a hilarious match.com proposal from a man in his 50s:
Date received: August 08, 2009
Subject: A compliment from DC
I don’t usually write to someone who is so much younger than myself, but you are seemingly much different than the average run of the mill young woman.
Your feet seem so firmly planted on terra firma. You appear to be bright and cheerful and willing to stick your toe into new and exciting waters. I like curiosity in a person, and of course you are just lovely.
I am a cheerful, fit, fun, thoughtful, and emotionally well adjusted man. I take each day on its own merits. There is always something new to discover and a new path to follow wherever it might lead. I am a curious traveler, an innovative cook, a man whose talents are now given to writing fiction and whose favorite physical activities are tennis, hiking, biking, and gardening. Toss in a trip to a museum, the theater opera and you start to get a clear picture of the man behind the keyboard in cyberspace.
Yes, there is an age gap between us. However, somehow, a little voice tells me that you march to your own drummer; that you might be someone who is inclined toward living her life a little out of the ordinary box and be interested overcoming the great American taboo concerning older/younger friendships.
So...please do review my profile and if the spirit moves you, I'd love to hear back from you.
Ciao bella,
Steve
------------------
an urgent, very 2010 plea from a friend:
Wed, Jan 27, 2010, 3:45 PM
via a twist of fate, I now have a burned copy of Ke$ha's album. you need to hear "party at a rich dude's house"
------------------
an epic AIM conversation i saved, in which a friend and i were having the time of our lives coming up with roller derby names:
alloverober (1:33:07 PM):Julia Rob-hurts
polkadotpanic (1:33:10 PM):hahahaha
alloverober (1:33:50 PM):are there any guys?
polkadotpanic (1:33:52 PM):nope
alloverober (1:33:53 PM):Bruise Willis
polkadotpanic (1:33:56 PM):hahah
polkadotpanic (1:33:58 PM):i already decided
polkadotpanic (1:34:00 PM):my name
polkadotpanic (1:34:06 PM):will be punchy bruiser
alloverober (1:34:09 PM):haha
alloverober (1:34:11 PM):thats good
alloverober (1:34:40 PM):The Brady Punch
polkadotpanic (1:34:43 PM):hahaha
polkadotpanic (1:34:49 PM):i'm trying to think of a lindsay lohan one
alloverober (1:35:06 PM):Lindsey Lowhands
alloverober (1:35:08 PM):please
polkadotpanic (1:35:08 PM):hahah
alloverober (1:35:13 PM):you're better than that
alloverober (1:35:14 PM):ha
polkadotpanic (1:35:16 PM):true
polkadotpanic (1:35:34 PM):Jennifer Harm-her
alloverober (1:36:44 PM):HA
alloverober (1:37:53 PM):Jessica Elbow
alloverober (1:38:29 PM):Jessical Hell-ba?
polkadotpanic (1:38:45 PM):lol, hmmm yeah that second one works better i think
alloverober (1:40:53 PM):Hit-Me Spears?
polkadotpanic (1:40:56 PM):hahahah
polkadotpanic (1:40:58 PM):yes
alloverober (1:43:01 PM):Bette Hitler
alloverober (1:43:03 PM):haha
alloverober (1:43:04 PM):too far?
polkadotpanic (1:43:06 PM):hahaha
polkadotpanic (1:43:08 PM):lil' bit
alloverober (1:43:52 PM):Dionne War-Wack
polkadotpanic (1:43:56 PM):hahahaha
polkadotpanic (1:43:57 PM):love it
polkadotpanic (1:44:37 PM):Paula Ab-duel
polkadotpanic (1:44:45 PM):though that's hard when it's just spoken
polkadotpanic (1:44:45 PM):haha
polkadotpanic (1:46:02 PM):Pummel-a Anderson
alloverober (1:46:12 PM):NICE!
polkadotpanic (1:46:17 PM):hahaha
polkadotpanic (1:51:22 PM):the best one i read yesterday
polkadotpanic (1:51:29 PM):was "sandra day o'clobber"
alloverober (1:53:14 PM):haha
alloverober (1:53:15 PM):ha
polkadotpanic (1:54:05 PM):so good
polkadotpanic (1:54:23 PM):Kicki Lake
alloverober (1:54:36 PM):haha
alloverober (1:54:43 PM):i was just trying to think of one for her
polkadotpanic (1:54:53 PM):yeah right
polkadotpanic (1:54:53 PM):hahaha
polkadotpanic (1:57:29 PM):Katherine Hata-Jones
alloverober (1:57:42 PM):thats good
polkadotpanic (1:57:42 PM):or Catherine
alloverober (1:57:43 PM):real good
polkadotpanic (1:57:44 PM):whatever it is
polkadotpanic (1:57:48 PM):hahaha
polkadotpanic (1:57:51 PM):i could do this all day
polkadotpanic (1:57:54 PM):and might
polkadotpanic (1:58:22 PM):Florence Fightengale
alloverober (1:58:25 PM):haha
alloverober (1:58:28 PM):haa
alloverober (1:58:34 PM):you've found your calling.
polkadotpanic (1:58:41 PM):i may have.
alloverober (2:00:32 PM):got a meeting
alloverober (2:00:32 PM):but
alloverober (2:00:36 PM):Mary Choppins?
polkadotpanic (2:00:39 PM):hahhaha
polkadotpanic (2:00:40 PM):yes
alloverober (2:19:16 PM):HEY!
alloverober (2:19:18 PM):you there
polkadotpanic (2:19:22 PM):HELLO!
alloverober (2:19:27 PM):Erin Break-a-Bitch
polkadotpanic (2:19:32 PM):hahahahahaha
polkadotpanic (2:19:33 PM):AWESOME
polkadotpanic (2:19:38 PM):OR
polkadotpanic (2:19:44 PM):Clock-a-Bitch
alloverober (2:19:45 PM):Broke?
alloverober (2:19:49 PM):Clock
alloverober (2:19:49 PM):ha
alloverober (2:20:00 PM):send that one to Mikey
polkadotpanic (2:20:01 PM):good stuff
alloverober (2:20:02 PM):he'll love it
polkadotpanic (2:20:18 PM):sent
polkadotpanic (2:20:20 PM):he went to get lunch
polkadotpanic (2:20:26 PM):but he'll enjoy the brilliance when he returns
polkadotpanic (2:24:03 PM):Harmin' San Diego
alloverober (2:24:36 PM):NICE
alloverober (2:25:04 PM):Audrey Floorburns?
polkadotpanic (2:25:21 PM):hahaha
alloverober (2:25:26 PM):team name
alloverober (2:25:31 PM):Third Glock from the Sun
polkadotpanic (2:25:35 PM):hahaha
polkadotpanic (2:25:36 PM):nice
polkadotpanic (2:25:58 PM):The Smacks of Life
alloverober (2:26:15 PM):Groin Pains
alloverober (2:26:15 PM):haha
alloverober (2:26:17 PM):sorry!@
alloverober (2:26:19 PM):sorry!
alloverober (2:26:25 PM):couldnt resist
polkadotpanic (2:26:27 PM):hahahaha
alloverober (2:28:30 PM):Claire Hucks-Tables
polkadotpanic (2:28:35 PM):ahahahha
polkadotpanic (2:28:52 PM):"hate" is an easy one to use
polkadotpanic (2:28:54 PM):hatey perry
alloverober (2:28:57 PM):yeah
alloverober (2:29:03 PM):Hatey Benjamin
alloverober (2:29:04 PM):haha
polkadotpanic (2:29:07 PM):hahaha
polkadotpanic (2:29:14 PM):wait i NEED to find out what her derby name was
polkadotpanic (2:32:47 PM):Hilary Ruff
polkadotpanic (2:35:08 PM):janet hackson
------------------ the best response to my craigslist post looking for a roommate:
Wed, Aug 25, 2010, 10:02 AM
Hi There,
My name is Regina and I'm a Flight attendant for jetblue airways of 5 years. I'm 28 years old. I live at _______ nowin boston. Just left my bf. I work about 15 days a month and gone alot!!! My hobbies include, passion for skiing as I'm a serious skier and traveller. I spend a lot of time at the gym and runnning. I dont really drink much but may have a glass of wine on occasion. I like to cook as well!!! I'm in a motorcyle club as well and ride my bike whenever possile. I'm clean and neat and like i said very laid back. I do have a car and a motorcycle. If we could work on the rent, since i would be part-time I could offer you guy buddy passes on jetblue as needed!!! hello...great deal! I'm from KY orginally, and have plenty of refrences. I just broke up with my bf like i said and need to move on.. I;m a great part-time roomate with not that much stuff, bed night stand tv, and need to get a small dresser and small storage for my ski gear as i ski on all on my off days and travel on them too
Below is my resume for addt. info on me and attached pictures as well.
